Liesl Hickey takes charge at GOP House campaign arm

Hickey, a hiking and tennis enthusiast who is a native of Melbourne, Fla., cut her political teeth in the fundraising world — first for the National Republican Senatorial Committee and then for Peter Fitzgerald’s successful 1998 U.S. Senate campaign in Illinois. She then began working for now-Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), spearheading the fundraising drive in his 2000 congressional campaign and managing his successful 2002 reelection effort. In 2003, she became Kirk’s chief of staff.

As Kirk’s top staffer, Hickey ran day-to-day operations for a Republican tasked with getting reelected in a Democratic-friendly district in suburban Chicago. In 2006, as moderate Republicans across the country were facing the political fights of their lives, Hickey drafted what became known on Capitol Hill as the “Suburban Agenda,” a plan to help GOP incumbents shake attempts by Democrats to tie them to an increasingly unpopular President George W. Bush.

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Republicans are betting that Hickey’s history of working with incumbents in tough races will pay dividends in 2014. The mother of three arrives in the executive director position after spending the previous election cycle overseeing the committee’s incumbent-retention program.

That post required her to work with an array of freshmen, many of whom had little experience in politics prior to winning in the 2010 conservative wave. She developed a reputation for a 24/7 work ethic, sometimes fielding late-night calls from worried incumbents.

“I think she has a variety of experiences in the political field — both on the official side and on the political side,” said Guy Harrison, the outgoing NRCC executive director. “I think that breadth of experience is something you need to have.”

Hickey expressed optimism that Republicans would put their opponents on defense, pointing to a collection of Democrats who reside in Republican-friendly districts.

“We’re on offense, and we have a lot of room to be on offense,” she said. “They have a lot less room.”